ANIMATORS FOLLOW FLIGHT OF PENGUINS

Presumably concluding that there will be no Happy Feet Three after HF2 apparently flopped at the box office, Australian animation house Dr. D. Studios has reportedly informed 600 of its 700 employees that they will be laid off early next month. But the Australian film industry website Inside Film (http://www. if.com.au) has indicated that other factors may have been at play in the dismissals — including the rising Australian dollar, which is now virtually on par with the U.S. dollar. The website indicates that the higher cost of production has not been offset by government tax rebates and that film workers are fleeing Australia to relocate to other countries — a veritable brain drain of local talent.